Remember Me
by HubbaBubbaBunny
Summary: "Why are you being so kind to me?" His icy blue eyes met mine and went back to my wound. He lightly patted my foot and I hissed lightly at the sharp pain. "You returned what you stole. It's the least I could do." He said. "I owe you this much," he said softly. I laughed humorlessly. "You don't owe me anything." "Yes, I do," his eyes met mine. "You have no idea how much I owe you."
1. The Meeting (Enchanted Forest)

I moved my hood slightly, to block out the rays of light beaming down on me. My cloak dragged behind me slightly as I rushed through the forest. I had a meeting to attend to with my fellow brothers and sister. I'm not entirely fond of these meetings, since it could put everyone in harms way, no thanks to Marcus. He always thought making secret announcements at the markets and taverns was smart. I; however, thought it was stupid, dangerous. We already lost Lionel, we don't need to lose anyone else.

As I came to a familiar part of the forest, I started to look for a specific tree. Though these meetings could be dangerous, we made sure to keep the location hidden, hidden well. I spotted our special oak tree and started for it. I cleared the leaves with my hands to reveal the cellar door. I don't know whoever thought of this, but it was a great plan to have a hidden cellar door on the bottom of the forest ground. I lifted the door and descended my way down the cramped stairwell, closing the door behind me.

I walked further into the cellar and saw everyone gathered around. Marcus, Lizard, Mina, Rick, and Seth. They all directed their attention on me. "Did I miss anything?" I asked as I pulled down my hood. They sat down at the center table and I quickly joined Mina's side. "What is now, Marcus?" I asked.

"There is news of a portal jumper in the forest." He said.

"A portal jumper?" I questioned. He nodded his head.

"Yes, I've had Mina and Seth gather some information and learned about this portal jumper." He said.

"Yes, I managed to spot him using a hat to travel out this world," Mina smiled happily. "It's a magically hat." She mused. I smiled slightly and patted her shoulder.

"Anything remotely close to anything magic grabs your attention. Remember what happened with that magical food Seth had given you?" I reminded her. She nodded her head and then glared at Seth.

"Yeah, I do. I was shrunken for a whole week," she raised her voice slightly, startling Seth a little. I chuckled lightly and glanced at Marcus. He held a stern look in his eyes. I held my hands up in defeat.

"My apologies, continue." I urged him.

"With the information we gathered, we managed to find where he resides at," Marcus pointed to a part of the map. "Here, he lives in a small cottage. From what we know, he's completely alone." Marcus explained further.

"So, we're stealing a hat?" I asked him.

"A magical hat," Lizard added. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Correction, so we're stealing a magical hat?" I asked.

"Actually, you are, Lillian." Rick said. I furrowed my brows.

"Me?" I croaked. "Wouldn't it be best if Mina and Seth did that? They've obviously know more about this portal jumper than me."

"True, but you are one of the stealthiest. You can get in and get out with ease." Marcus said. That may be very true, but I don't know the portal jumper's perimeters. I'd be going in defenseless in a way.

"But I wouldn't know the perimeter better than Mina and Seth. They should do it." I protested.

"Mina will be assisting you. She'll help you with everything you need to know about the perimeter by tonight." Marcus said. I opened my mouth to protest, but nothing came out. I've never really enjoyed this lifestyle. Having to steal from people to benefit myself made me feel sick. I've tried numerous times to escape from having to do tasks, but somehow I'd end up doing them anyway.

"Fine. When shall Mina and I head out?" I asked.

"Soon. I want you two to leave once the sun sets and I want that hat by morning." Marcus said. Mina and I both nodded our heads.

We were covered in darkness, as he sat high in the trees. Mina and I were watching over the cottage, making sure everything was clear. Though there were no lit candles, we needed to make sure no one would be coming. After sitting for an hour with no sign of anyone, we decided to take action. Well, more like I decided to take action. Mina was going to watch the perimeter.

I walked to the door and quietly opened it. Though it made a light creaking sound, there was no sounds of anyone moving on the other side. Once I made it into the cottage, I quietly closed the door behind me and used what light was given by the full moon. I snuck around the cottage, looking for the hat, which seemed to not want to be found.

As I walked past this table, I saw a string of gold. My eyes saw it, but my mind couldn't believe it. I reached for the yarn, only to be startled by the slam of the door. I jumped and turned to see a figure of a man. The moonlight shined only half of his face, and I could easily tell that wasn't very happy to see me.

"Looking for something?" He asked.

"I'm lost." I lied. He chuckled lowly and shook his head.

"No, I think you're looking for something," he took a few steps towards me. "A hat, maybe?" He chimed. My eyes slightly widened. How does he know I'm looking for the hat? His face shined more in the moonlight, and I noticed that he was wearing a hat. Thee hat at that.

"Why would you think that?" I quickly glanced at the door behind the man and then quickly looked for something to knock him out with. "I'm just a lost woman, that's all." I lied. My hand behind me quickly searched for something and I found something of hard material and smirked slightly. Without warning, I quickly hit the man in the head, and quickly grabbed the hat from him, and rushed out the house. "Seems like I lied," I chimed happily. He called behind me, telling me to stop and bring back his hat, but his voice soon faded as I got further and further away.

* * *

A/N: So, every other chapter will be showing Lillian and Jefferson's Enchanted Forest lives and their story.


	2. Coffee (Storybrooke)

The chime of a bell rang in my ear as I walked into Granny's. I looked around for an empty seat and saw one at the counter. Practically as soon as I sat down, my Ruby came to me with a bright smile on her face. "What can I get you, Carter?" She asked.

"A coffee," I said as yawned. She nodded her head and grabbed me a mug and poured the coffee into it. "Did you have a long night or something?" She asked. I nodded my head.

"Yeah, I had a really busy night at the hospital. I had to comfort a patient until they fell asleep. Sadly that wasn't until four in the morning." I told her. I've been volunteering at the hospital, comforting the younger patients whenever they needed help with things. If a patient ever had trouble sleeping, I seemed to always sooth them to sleep. Or if they had any discomforts, I'd always help them. Maybe even talk to them like what Archie does with his patients.

Ruby smiled as she handed me the creamer cups. "How do you do it?" She asked.

"Do what?" I asked as I took the creamers and started adding them to my coffee.

"I've dropped by the hospital a few times and I've seen how easily you can sooth those kids. It's like you know exactly what you're doing," she said. I smiled and shrugged my shoulders.

"I don't know, it just comes natural, I guess." I said. as I grabbed the container of sugar and began pouring it into my coffee. Once I poured my desired amount, I took a spoon and stirred the contents together and gave the coffee a taste test. I sighed contently for it tasted the way I've always desired. I brought the mug to my lips and took a small sip.

"Carter Mayes?" I heard someone call. I turned my head to see my good friend, Melissa. I smiled happily as she made her way to the empty seat beside me.

"Must you always call me by my full name?" I asked her. She chuckled lightly.

"Yes," she answered flatly. I rolled my eyes as I directed my attention back onto my coffee. "So, I haven't seen you in a while. Have you been busy?"

I nodded my head slightly as I took another sip of my coffee. "Yeah, the hospital has been quite busy. Last night for instance. I didn't get to sleep until a little after four this morning." I told her. She glanced at the clock that was behind her.

"It's it's eight already," she looked back at me. "You only got about four hours of sleep?" She asked. I nodded my head. She shook her head in disbelief. "How do you do it?" She asked, sounding amazed.

"That's what I asked her," Ruby said as she walked passed us. I rolled my eyes and placed my mug down.

"It's nothing, really. I'm used to getting little sleep." I told her.

"You have bags under your eyes, and you look exhausted. You should get more sleep." She said.

I shook my head, "I can't. It's difficult for me to sleep. Besides, I can survive on very little sleep."I assured her. Ruby walked passed us, but Melissa stopped her.

"Can I get a glass of water?" She asked. Ruby nodded her head and shortly brought Melissa the water. Melissa then switched my coffee with the water and gave me a stern look. "You need the water more than the coffee."

"No, I need that coffee more than the water." I protested. I reached for the coffee mug, but Melissa pushed it further away. Ruby then took the cup and my mouth dropped slightly.

"She's right, Carter. You should just go home and rest." Ruby told me.

"I'll go to the hospital and tell them you can't come in today. Just go home and sleep, okay?" Melissa said softly. I looked at Ruby and then back at her. I let out a defeated sigh and nodded my head.

"Fine, but I can assure you that I won't sleep for long." I told them. They both smiled.

"As long as you sleep for longer than four hours, I'm satisfied." Melissa said. I said my goodbyes to them and left Granny's. I started my way down the sidewalk, in the direction of my apartment. As I walked up the stairs of my apartment building, I was fiddling with my keys as I looked for the key to my door. Once I found the key, I looked up at my door to see Luke.

"There you are," he chimed. I wanted to runaway, but it was pointless. He's already seen me. Besides, he has his way of finding me, no matter how hard I try to hide. "I need you to do something for me."


	3. The Tavern (Enchanted Forest)

The sounds of the birds chirping in the distance rang through my ears. The sounds of the leaves crunching underneath our feet, one step after the other. The light rays shining in our eyes, as the sun slowly rose in the distance. I glanced at Mina as she happily wore the hat on her head. She's been wearing it since we left camp after successfully getting away from that portal jumper.

"The hat suits you so well," I joked. She smiled happily as she fixed the hat slightly.

"I feel somewhat, mysterious as I wear it." She said.

"You look mad," I snorted. She rolled her eyes as she climbed over a fallen tree trunk and began walking on it.

"You only wished you could look half as amazing in this hat as I," she chimed. I rolled my eyes as I chuckled. Mina always thought she was every man's dream. With her green eyes and light blonde hair, many men have fallen for her, and many have been coldly shot down by her. Figuratively and literally. She's a pretty tough woman, but many men think the opposite. That's truly their mistake.

When we reached the oak tree, I saw Marcus, Seth, Lizard, and Rick gathered around. When Marcus saw the hat on Mina's head, I noticed a small smile form on his face. "I see you've succeeded," Marcus said.

Mina nodded her head, "yeah, after attacking the man." She snorted.

"You attacked him?" Lizard questioned. I nodded my head.

"I was snooping around when he suddenly came into the cottage. I had to grab the hat, so things got a little physical," I explained. I heard a small chuckle escape from Rick as he shook his head.

"I would have expected you to be much more subtle." He commented.

I shrugged my shoulders, "sometimes the cast calls for something less subtle." I told him.

"Like last night," Mina chimed. I smiled as I took the hat from her head. I then handed it to Marcus and he examined the hat, his eyes glowing as if the hat he was holding was made of pure gold.

"We will surely celebrate for the success for such a task," Marcus said happily. Seth and Lizard rushed to Marcus' side.

"At the tavern?" They asked in unison. Marcus nodded his head.

"But first, we should rest. We've been out doing some work ourselves," he said. Rick moved the leaves from over the cellar door and descended down the stairs. I followed him and walked over to the small bed I had set up for myself. Though I did managed to sleep for a little bit, I was still pretty exhausted from the work of last night. I snuggled myself into my bed and easily drifted to sleep.

"Another!" I heard Lizard yell happily. We've been at the tavern since sunset and that seemed like ages ago. The men have been drinking away, drowning themselves in drinks and women. Mina was almost just as bad as them. She was drinking with a few men, and cheating them out their money. It was no surprise of how gullible they were and so easy to swindle.

I sat at a table, slowly running my finger around the rim of my cup. I was never the one to act so wildly whenever we went to taverns, or in general. I'm quiet reserved and didn't communicate much with the people. Out of the entire gang, Mina is the only one that I feel the most comfortable with. Maybe it had to do with how similar our up bringing both have been beggars at a young at and eventually shifted over to thieving. She's almost like family to me.

The booming tones of Lizard and Seth bounced off the walls of the tavern. I never knew they were ones to be so loud. This is probably the loudest I've ever heard them. I was about to get up from the table to return to our safehouse, but Mina plopped down onto the bench. "Are you leaving already?" She asked. I nodded my head.

"It's not my scene. Besides, I'm not having much fun. I'm a bit tired still," I said through a light yawn. She smiled sluggishly and nodded her head as she put her arm around my shoulders.

"I'll see you back at the safehouse?" She asked. I nodded. I then got up from the bench and placed my hand onto her shoulder.

"Don't do anything Lizard wouldn't do," I said with a small smile.

She laughed, "no promises can be made." I rolled my eyes as I shook my head. I made my way through the wild crowd and exited the tavern. As I started to reach the forest, I was stopped by a velvety voice.

"Where's my hat?" I didn't even need to look behind me to know who it was. I smirked slightly and turned to face the portal jumper. His arms was crossed and he wore a long overcoat what looked to be a silky, red velvet scarf. In the light, I could get a clear view of his face as he was able to get a view of mine. It would be pointless to try to hide my face by this point. "I'll ask again. Where's. My. Hat?" He punctuated every word.

I smirked slightly, "I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about," I said innocently. He took a step towards me, held an intimidating expression on his face. But I stood my ground.

"It's best if you just cut out the games and tell me where my hat is," he towered over me. His eyes were like daggers in mine. He seemed to be trying his hardest to get me to tell him where his hat is.

"What if I enjoy playing games?" I chimed with a sly smirk.

He scoffed, "I'm afraid you won't like the way I play games."

I cocked my head slightly, "I can handle whatever you throw my way." I challenged.

He smirked, "really? Could you handle The Dark One?" I narrowed my eyes slightly. "He's my employer, and if you mess with me, you mess with him. He's the most powerful creature in the land," he chuckled lowly. "You couldn't handle the games he'll throw your way."

"I can. And I will!" I pushed the man away from me. His low chuckle rang in my ears as I walked away from him.

"You've been warned, thief!" The man called after me.


	4. Stealing (Storybrooke)

"No, I won't do it." I protested. I threw some pictures of a house onto my coffee table.

"What do you mean, you won't do it? You owe Chris and I for what you did." His tone was threatening, but I wasn't going to give in.

"I did it to help you two. Why can't you see that?" I took a deep breath and shook my head, "I'm done with stealing." I said flatly.

He scoffed, "Done with stealing?" He laughed humorlessly. "You can never be done with stealing. Once you start, you can never stop." His words bounced off the walls of the apartment, ringing in my ears. "Because of you, Brendan is in the hospital, barely clinging onto his life." He then slid the photos in front of me. "Don't do it for Chris and I, do it for Brendan." He then stood up and left my apartment. I let out a deep breath.

I got up from my couch and walked into my bedroom and kicked off my shoes. I then crawled into my bed and covered myself with my blanket. I laid there for what seemed like forever. I couldn't sleep at all. I wanted to, but my mind was racing. I kept thinking of what happened to Brendan a while ago and how Chris and Luke blame me for what happened to him. I didn't plan for it to happen, but it did.

Without even a second thought, I crawled out of my bed and slowly made my way into my living room. I slowly approached the coffee table and looked down at the pictures. The guilt started building up inside of me, almost too much for me to bear. My mind raced with the picture of Brendan laying in the hospital and the news Luke brought. I don't want to go back to this lifestyle, I want to be good.

"Do it for Brendan." Luke's words rang in my head, pounding against my skull. I picked up the photos and studied them. I then looked at the map that was left on the table.

"He even marked the location," I said to myself. I then glanced at the clock and realized it was almost nine. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. It's only for Brendan.

The sounds of twigs breaking echoed through the air. I kept constantly checking the map to make sure I was heading in the right direction. Sadly, the flashlight I was using was slowly dying and no matter how many times I shook it or hit it, the light seemed to only dim even more. I climbed myself over a tree trunk and continued walking for quite sometime. When I looked further ahead, I caught glimpse of light. I sped walked in that direction and a house came into my view.

I hid behind a tree and took out a photo and examined the house. It was the exact same one shown in the photo. I placed the photo back into my pocket and looked at the perimeter of the house. When I thought the coast was clear, I pulled down my black beanie slightly and looked for a back door. I managed to find one and I took out my lock-picking tools. I started fiddling with the lock and within a short moment, I heard the click of the lock.

I slowly opened the door and peaked my head in. Luckily, no one was around. I snuck inside and gently closed the door behind me. I quietly snuck into the living room and looked for something of great value. I looked at the many fancy things, but none looked of much value. Certainly not enough that could help pay for Brendan's hospital bills.

I snooped around the rest of the first floor, and there was nothing of much value. I walked to the stairs and cautiously looked up. The chance of getting caught is even riskier on a second floor of a home. But it wouldn't be the first for me to do that. I slowly placed my right foot onto the first step and I heard no sound. I let out a light content sigh and took a step with my left foot. Again, no sound. I continued my steady rhythm up the stairs until I reached the second floor.

I slowly started down the beautifully decorated corridor and examined the few things on display. I came to a cracked door and when I peaked inside it, I saw a well dressed man, who appeared to be sharpening a pair of scissors. I swallowed hard and carefully continued my look for something of value. I came to a door and slowly opened it. I quietly snuck inside the room and closed the door behind me. When I turned around, I realized I was in the man's bedroom.

I started to loot the room and look for something worth enough value. I went through his drawers, only to find dozens of silky scarves and his clothes. I spotted a small jewelry box on his dresser and began to go through it. I found many jewels, probably enough to pay for the medical bills. Just as I was about to close the box, I saw a ring that stood out to me. I placed the jewels onto the dresser and picked up the ring.

I examined it and realized how different it was from the rest of the rings. It wasn't fancy at all, quite dull if you asked me. But for some reason, I couldn't help but find it fascinating to me. "Can I help you with something?" I jumped at the sound of the voice. I looked at the door to see the light from the hallway, seeping into the room and that man stood in the doorway. "Or are you already helping yourself," he added.

I glanced over at the man, too afraid to show my face. If he sees my face, I'm dead. Done, everything will be over. I heard the shift of the floorboards and without even knowing how it happened, I threw the jewelry box at the man, causing him to stumble into the hallway, and quickly grabbed the jewels and rushed out the room. "Stop!" The man called after me as I rushed down the stairs. I shoved whatever jewels I could into my pockets as I ran through the house and out the backdoor. As I started into the wood, I looked behind me to see the man still chasing after me.

As I ran, I jumped over the fallen branches and trunks on the forest ground and avoided anything in my way. I kept running more and more, but it seemed like the man was getting closer and closer. And before I knew it, my foot hit a tree trunk and I tumbled to the ground, feeling a sharp pain in my foot. I cried in pain as I held my foot. "Who the hell are you?" The man questioned as he caught up to me.

"I'm so sorry, sir." I said weakly. The man roughly grabbed my hand and opened it to grab the ring I had. He then ripped the hat off my head and looked me in the eyes. I saw his eyes widen in shock and his mouth dropped slightly. His reaction was completely different than I expected.

"L-Lillian?" He said as light as a whisper.


	5. Telling a Friend (Enchanted Forest)

A few weeks has gone by, and nothing has yet to happen to me. I'll admit that it makes me happy, but it also puts me on edge. As he said, his employer is The Dark One, and there's no telling what he could do. I've hear many stories about him and none were good. He would make deals with couples and in return, he'd ask for their firstborn. And I've heard of what could happen if one breaks a deal with him. There have only been witnesses, no victims. None have been lucky enough to survive.

"Lillian," I heard Mina's voice bring me out of my thoughts. I looked beside me to see her sitting on my bed. She gave me a curious look. "What's on your mind? You seemed to be in deep thought lately."

I brushed off my thoughts, "it's nothing. Really." I assured her. I straightened out the thin cloth on my bed, trying to avoid any eye contact with her. When I accidentally glanced over, her eyes were like daggers to mine. "I've known you for a long time. That lie doesn't work on me anymore." She said. I let out a light sigh and sat on my bed.

"Well, remember when we had to steal that portal jumper's hat?" She nodded her head. "Well, the day after, when we went to the tavern, he appeared and demanded me to return his hat and-"

"He knew you were at the tavern?!" I quickly covered her mouth to stop her from raising her voice anymore. I nodded my head and slowly brought my hand down from her mouth.

"I don't know how he knew I'd be there, but he did. And of course I refused to return his hat and so he basically threatened to bring his employer into this." I explained to her.

She raised an eyebrow slightly, "and who's his employer?"

"The Dark One." I answered nervously. Her eyes immediately shot open wide, her mouth dropped. She was about to yell at me, but I covered her mouth before any words could escape. "Yes, I know this seems bad but nothing has happened yet. He probably never even told his employer about this." I tried to assure her. She pulled my hand away.

"You're messing with The Dark One. There's no telling when he'll attack. He could be planning an attack at this very moment." She said.

"I know, I know. But this isn't my fault. Everyone else was keen on taking the hat and forced me to do it. This isn't my fault at all." I tried to explain.

"What isn't your fault?" I heard Rick's voice join in. Both Mina and I looked at him. "What?"

"We're talking about our problems." I lied.

"Like what? Maybe I could-"

"No." Mina and I said in unison.

He furrowed his brows slightly, "oh, okay." He then walked away, leaving Mina and I alone.

"But this isn't my fault, it's Marcus'. He should have just left the hat alone." I finished.

"Then what are you going to to?" She asked me.

I shrugged my shoulders, "I don't know. Give it back to him, maybe? Maybe once I do he-" I stopped when I heard the cellar door open and heard fast footsteps. I looked at the archway to see Lizard huffing.

"We were found. We need to leave. Now!" He told us. Mina hopped off the bed and scurried to her things. I grabbed whatever I could and as I was about to run out, I remembered about the hat. I went to a chest and opened it to find the hat still there. I then quickly grabbed it and rushed out the safehouse. I immediately joined into the sword fighting against soldiers that were unknown to me.

A man charged at me and I used what little knowledge of swordsmanship I had to defend myself against him. It was a bit challenging since I was holding the portal jumper's hat in my other hand. When the soldier when to attack me from above, I held my sword up to block it and quickly kicked the man in the stomach. I then took that opportunity to run away. I only hope none of them hate me for this. I'm doing it to help them, and I only hope they see that in time.


End file.
